Reflections
by Caramelturnip
Summary: Mulan's thoughts from the point of being praised by the Emperor to returning home. Mostly description, not much speaking. One-shot.


**A/N: I haven't posted a fanfic in forever, but this came to me suddenly after watching Mulan for the first time in forever (hehe) and I had to write it! I hope you all like it, and feedback is always appreciated! (hate, however is not. Go take your hate somewhere else)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Mulan at all, which, y'anno, sucks, but what can ya do? :)**

Mulan couldn't believe it. The Emperor of China was bowing... to _her! _Never in all her dreams could she have imagined this.

And then Chi-Fu, the conceited and cowardly council member, bowed to her.

And slowly, everyone in the palace courtyard got on their knees and bowed. _To Mulan._

Mulan looked around to see these strange events. It was unheard of to bow to a woman, especially a woman who had dishonoured her family and the army!

"See to it that this woman is made a member of my council." The Emperor said to Chi-Fu after a moment.

Mulan's eyes widened even more. The Emperor of China was offering her a job on his council.

"What?! But, there are no council positions open, your Majesty." Chi-Fu retorted, still annoyed and irritated by Mulan.

"Very well. You can have his job." The Emperor said, this time to Mulan.

The Emperor of China was offering Mulan to take someone else's job, just so that she could be on his council!

"What? But- I..." And with that Chi-Fu fainted. Mulan smiled slightly.

She respectfully refused the Emperor's offer. However amazing it would be to be on the Emperor's council.. probable the onlywomanon the Emperor's council, Mulan needed to return home. Her family was waiting for her, missing her, and she missed them too.

The Emperor only smiled at her refusal, and handed her his crest along with Shan Yu's sword.

Mulan looked at her gifts. She wasted no time in throwing her arms around the Emperor, wanting to thank him for all he had done for her.

After pulling away, she returned to the others. She hugged them too, letting them know how much she would miss them after all they'd been through.

And then Shang.

Mulan walked over to him, not knowing what to expect from her Captain. She knew she liked him, Mushu had pointed it out (much to her annoyance at the time) but she was unclear how he viewed her now, after all these events.

"Um..." He began, and Mulan smiled, "you- you fight good." He finished, and Mulan's face fell. That was not what she was expecting.

Nevertheless, she respectfully replied, "oh. Thank you," before walking over to her beloved horse, Khan.

"Khan. Let's go home." She said simply. She climbed onto her horse who in turn galloped down the palace steps. All the while the people of China applauded and cheered for her. Mulan couldn't believe that the applause was all for _her. _Her, just a young woman from a small village in China, who went to war to save her father. That's all, but here they were, praising her.

* * *

The journey home was tiresome, but she persisted. She was obviously worried how her family would react to her disappearance, especially her father. Would they be angry? Would they feel dishonoured once more by her? Would they have wanted her to take the job on the council?

Some part of her fired back at these negative thoughts, replacing them instead with positive ones of how _of course _her family would welcome her home, because she was their daughter who had saved all of China and been honoured by the Emperor.

She finally returned home to her village, and she put Khan in his stable as Mushu rushed off to wherever he went when he wasn't working.

Then it was time to face her father. She walked through the familiar stone arch in their garden, where she saw Fa Zhou, her wonderful father, sitting on a bench under the cherry blossom tree. The same spot she always went to when she was upset. The same spot her father always found her in to comfort her.

Mulan took a deep breath, the sword and crest in her hands, before approaching her father.

"Mulan." Her father gasped.

"Father." Mulan said, bowing before her father. "I've brought you the sword of Shan Yu." She handed her father the sword, "and the crest of the Emperor. They're gifts. To honour the Fa family." Mulan took the crest and handed it to her father.

She was surprised to see her father throw the gifts aside, before joining her on the ground in a tight embrace.

"The greatest gift and honour, is having _you _for a daughter." Her father said, pulling back slightly and wiping a tear from Mulan's cheek as it fell. She smiled, hugging her father again.

"I've missed you so."

"I've missed you too." Mulan buried her face in her father's neck. She was so close to her father, and the thought of disappointing him sickened her. The afternoon she returned from the matchmaker having been dishonoured made her want to curl up into a hole and never come out. She loved her father, and now returning to him made her feel happy again, after months of worry during the war, however great of an experience it was.

All the negative thoughts she had previously had disappeared. Here, home with her family was were she was supposed to be.

_She _was the hero of China, _she _had defeated Shan-Yu, _she _had been praised by the Emperor.

She had honoured her family.

**A/N: That's it! Again, hope you enjoyed, and please leave feedback and constructive criticism in the reviews, I'm always looking for ways to make my writing better! :D**


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